The Braves have already made one notable bullpen move this week by signing Evan Phillips, but Atlanta may not be done adding late-inning help. Francys Romero reports that the Braves and Tigers remain interested in veteran closer Raisel Iglesias, even after Detroit added Emilio Pagan.
For Atlanta, a reunion would be a familiar play. It would also be the second straight offseason the club has brought Iglesias back, after signing him to a one-year, $16 million deal last winter. There’s plenty of comfort on both sides, and Iglesias has kept pitching at a level that leaves little reason to worry about a drop-off as he heads into his age-37 season.
Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic add that another Iglesias deal could affect how Atlanta handles the rest of its pitching plan. Re-signing him to bolster the bullpen would increase the odds that the Braves lean on Didier Fuentes as a starter next season, though the club still figures to bring in a more established starter even if Fuentes gets stretched out in Spring Training.
The Nationals, meanwhile, are looking at their bullpen through a different lens. Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic writes that Washington’s relief corps was one of the worst in baseball in 2026, but significant bullpen spending may not be coming.
As Nusbaum put it, “relievers who command multiple years and significant money are probably off the table.” That approach fits a rebuilding club, even one that outperformed expectations with 77 wins last year.
Washington does appear more open to upgrading the rotation. Nusbaum said the Nats have “asked around about controllable starting pitching in trade talks, and is casting a wider net than last season.”
The Nationals also made a front-office hire, bringing in John Morris as their new VP of baseball research. Nusbaum reports that Morris will oversee “the baseball side of the Nats analytics department.” He arrives from the Yankees, where he served as assistant director of quantitative analysis.
In Miami, the Marlins have added Trayce Thompson to their baseball operations department, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The move likely signals the end of Thompson’s playing career. He’s 35, and his pro journey included parts of seven MLB seasons from 2015-23, plus the last three years spent in the minors, the Mexican League, independent ball, and with Great Britain’s World Baseball Classic team.
Thompson appeared for five major league teams, with 217 of his 369 big league games coming in a Dodgers uniform. His best extended offensive stretch came during a second-half run with the 2022 Dodgers, and he’ll close out his MLB career with 45 home runs and a .212/.300/.411 line across 1,058 plate appearances.
In Other News...
Marlins Still Have Two Roster Holes Peter Bendix Must Address
Peter Bendix used the General Managers Meetings to sketch out where the Marlins still have work to do, and the picture is fairly clear even with spring still ahead. Miami expects several right-handed starters to report to Spring Training as part of its rotation mix, but the front office is still weighing outside help as it sorts through the rest of the roster and decides how much it wants to lean on internal options.
The club is also keeping tabs on players coming back from injuries, along with prospects in the minors, while scanning the free-agent market and arbitration pool for fits. Two spots remain especially open-ended: a left-handed arm for the bullpen and a backup catcher, with the latter likely to come from a veteran addition if the right opportunity surfaces. [Read more 🡒]
Marlins Just Made A Risky Bet With Their Hitting Coach Move
The Marlins are making a change in the dugout that says plenty about where they think their offense is headed. Miami did not retain Pedro Guerrero after two seasons, even after he helped oversee some offensive gains and player development, and the club has turned the job over to Dillon Lawson as it looks for a new voice to keep the lineup moving forward.
Lawson brings a different kind of resume to the assignment, one that carries both upside and risk. His recent coaching stops with the Yankees and Red Sox ended before their expected finish, and Miami is betting that a fresh start here will be the place where his approach sticks and the offense takes another step. [Read more 🡒]